China said yesterday that it would host an envoy of the Syrian president Bashar al-Assad and consider another visit by members of the opposition, as Beijing steps up its diplomacy to help resolve the crisis gripping the Middle Eastern country.

Syrian rebels fighting to oust President Bashar al-Assad need the protection of foreign-guarded no-fly zones and safe havens near the borders with Jordan and Turkey, a Syrian opposition leader said yesterday.

Abdelbasset Sida, head of the Syrian National Council, said the US had realised the absence of a no-fly zone to counter Assad's air superiority hindered rebel movements.

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's efforts to show his regime is in control have taken a hit with the defection of Prime Minister Dr Riad Hijab. Of the growing list of political and military figures to have switched allegiance to the opposition Free Syrian Army rebels, none has been as high-profile.

The tide has turned against Syrian president Bashar al-Assad's regime. Although rebels are battling for control of the capital, Damascus, and the second city, Aleppo, civil war having come to the dictator's door is a turning point from which there can never be reconciliation.

United Nations chief Ban Ki-moon, due to speak at the China-Africa co-operation forum tomorrow, appealed to Beijing last night to provide more assistance to Africa, not only for economic development but also in political and social areas.

A street hawker's self-immolation in Tunis changed the course of history in North Africa and the Middle East. Western-styled electoral systems are likely to be institutionalised in the region, while traditional authoritarianism is on the wane. However, the process is going to be a long one.

Former UN secretary-general Kofi Annan's peace mission to end the bloody conflict in Syria always had only the slimmest chance of success. Syrian President Bashar al-Assad plainly does not want to negotiate with his opponents, preferring to answer those who want him to give sway to democratic rule with guns.